Has Anyone Tried Bead Maker?

[Burrito]

as you mentioned above, dust is quite annoying.

this is the first car i've done ceramic on and also the first car i wash/top coast as often as i do and sitting in my garage its like a magnet for dust. i think its the ceramic though since i top coat my wifes minivan (non ceramic coated) and it seems to fair better with dust

 

[joebruin77]

I did a test with some products, found here:
Automotive Wax and Top Coating Experiment

I really like Hydrosilex, but I have hard water at my house so I always do a final wipe down after washing with a top coat product to get any smudges and to add gloss and shine. Hydrosilex was simply too expensive to apply every week. I started looking for a cheaper alternative and came across BeadMaker. So far I really like it after using it for 2 weeks. I feel it is as slick, or slicker than Hydrosilex. I have a full ceramic pro coating on the car, and PPF on the front end. I think 3 coats of BeadMaker on top of the ceramic coating seems slicker than the ceramic coating alone. My fingers slip off the trunk when trying to close the hatch. It seems to attract dust, similar to Hydrosilex. It washes easily, and lasted through my first wash cycle and is still extremely slick. It is extremely cheap, easy to apply, and smells amazing. A perfect solution for wiping down the car after washing it every week. And the best part is that it really shines the car and makes the car glossy. More so than any other product I have tried, and it doesn't get streaky when applying. So far I am a huge fan but want to keep applying it and see what I think after a month or so.

That's a really informative experiment you did. You can clearly see how much more effective the Hydrosilex was compared to all the other products. I would love to see a similar experiment comparing Hydrosilex, Bead Maker, and Optimum's Hyper Seal.

Thanks again!

 

[mzairboy]

That's a really informative experiment you did. You can clearly see how much more effective the Hydrosilex was compared to all the other products. I would love to see a similar experiment comparing Hydrosilex, Bead Maker, and Optimum's Hyper Seal.

Thanks again!

I have some Hydrosilex and BeadMaker. If I pick up some Hyper Seal or Carpro Reload I will do another test.

 

[joebruin77]

I have some Hydrosilex and BeadMaker. If I pick up some Hyper Seal or Carpro Reload I will do another test.

That would be great. I cannot find a single decent comparison that includes Hyper Seal. I would be really curious to see how Hydroselix and Hyper Seal match up.

 

[CanadianMetal]

I have not tried plugging in my old bread maker into my Tesla yet , is that the new thing to do ?

I thought most people were trying to cut down on carbs these days ?

 

[Dr. J]

I have not tried plugging in my old bread maker into my Tesla yet , is that the new thing to do ?

I thought most people were trying to cut down on carbs these days ?

Do it while washing the car. An alternative is to use a toaster.

 

[mzairboy]

I purchased a sample bottle of CarPro Reload. I will be testing it against Hydrosilex, P&S Beadmaker, and Turtle Wax Ice Spray Wax, all which have performed well for me.

I would like to test HyperSeal and Ceramic Pro Care, but they do not sell sample bottles and they are too expensive to purchase a full size bottle just to test it out.

Results will be posted here in a few weeks.
Automotive Wax and Top Coating Experiment

 

[joebruin77]

I purchased a sample bottle of CarPro Reload. I will be testing it against Hydrosilex, P&S Beadmaker, and Turtle Wax Ice Spray Wax, all which have performed well for me.

I would like to test HyperSeal and Ceramic Pro Care, but they do not sell sample bottles and they are too expensive to purchase a full size bottle just to test it out.

Results will be posted here in a few weeks.
Automotive Wax and Top Coating Experiment

Thank you so much for doing this test. I just purchased Bead Maker and also Turtle Wax Seal and Shine. Maybe I'll do a test of my own.

What product do you use to strip the paint clean of previous waxes and sealants? I have a bottle of CG's Clean Slate and was thinking of using that.

 

[mzairboy]

Thank you so much for doing this test. I just purchased Bead Maker and also Turtle Wax Seal and Shine. Maybe I'll do a test of my own.

What product do you use to strip the paint clean of previous waxes and sealants? I have a bottle of CG's Clean Slate and was thinking of using that.

I washed the vehicle with Dawn dish soap, then used a clay bar, and then washed the vehicle again with Dawn dish soap. For my next test I will do the same, but also use IronX for additional decontamination.

 

[Mrcarcrazy]

I’m quite the fan of beadmaker. With my water I’m pretty much forced to do a quick detailer spray after a wash. So I use the beadmaker like a QD spray which gives a nice result. Wife’s BMW (what the Tesla is replacing) has PPF and beadmaker is perfectly fine on top. It lasts about a month for me. Cars are in garage at home and out in the heat when I take them to work.

Waiting on an order of CQuartz UK to apply to the cars. Then will top with beadmaker.

 

[joebruin77]

Bead Maker has a lot of fans so it must be good stuff. I have not tried it yet myself, but I ordered some and hope to try it soon.

From what I can tell, Bead Maker gives amazing gloss and shine. But I am not sure about the level of protection it provides from bird bombs and other contaminants.

My thought is to put down a base sealant that is very protective and durable and then top that with the Bead Maker. I have been using Hyper Seal as my go to sealant and I am very happy with it. But I have heard rave reviews about Turtle Wax Seal and Shine. I was skeptical at first about how a TW product could be so good, but it truly seems like a game changer. For example:

and

Hyper Seal can only be bought directly from the Opticoat website (professional side of Optimum) for about $40. Turtle Wax is about $7 a bottle. I plan on trying and comparing Hyper Seal and TW Seal and Shine, perhaps both topped with Bead Maker.

 

[islandchick]

Not this brand, but I've been interested to note there are few, if any, who seem to use Griot's products. Any reason?

 

[joebruin77]

Not this brand, but I've been interested to note there are few, if any, who seem to use Griot's products. Any reason?

I can only speak for myself. I think very highly of Griot's products and have wanted to try them, but I already have so many products that I have not purchased them yet. Lately I have been on a quest for more economical (i.e. lower cost) products and that is why I was attracted to both TW Seal and Shine and Bead Maker.

If there is a particular Griot's product that you have used and like, please share and let us know.

 

[mzairboy]

I will also test Seal and Shine since it was cheap to pick up a bottle.

 

[kgoroway]

I picked up a bottle of this stuff based on this thread. I applied it on Saturday morning to a few specific areas of my blue M3P right after a good two bucket wash. The car is only two months old, so the original delivery store applied wax is still holding up pretty well (water is still beading). The entire front half of my car is covered in PPF (which is interesting, because that *doesn't* have any wax on it at all, AFAIK.)

I did the hood and the front bumper, but not the front quarter panels/fenders. I did the entire trunk/rear bumper area. I did the front sheet of glass on the roof, but not the rear sheet of glass.

The feeling of the finish where it was applied is amazingly slick and smooth compared to the areas where it wasn't applied. Really, a big difference in feeling. I can't say that it actually looked any different though.

Of course, it rained two days later (today) while the car was parked outside at work.

I had to move the car off the charger after the rain, so I got to see it right away. Visibly, the beading on the car overall looked exactly the same. I couldn't tell the difference between any panel where it was applied, and panels where it wasn't applied.

Hours later, when the car had dried and I was home, the car was back to being "dirty", with a good coating of dust/dirt/road grime. I couldn't tell any difference in the amount of dirt that was clinging to any of the panels when comparing coated panels to uncoated panels.

So, as far as I can tell, aside from "feeling" slicker, beadmaker hasn't actually done anything to my benefit. It's quite possible that that is due to my 2 month old wax coating. But, if that's the case, why bother applying the stuff if you are going to keep the car waxed anyway?

It's also possible that when I go to wash the car again this coming weekend that I'll find the treated panels "easier" to clean...but the car wash I use, and the level of "dirt" never seems to be a problem anyway, so I don't know what I'd actually notice.

YMMV, but that was my experience. I think I'll continue to use the bottle until it is done, but it doesn't look like I'll be ordering the gallon sized refill.

 

[mzairboy]

I picked up a bottle of this stuff based on this thread. I applied it on Saturday morning to a few specific areas of my blue M3P right after a good two bucket wash. The car is only two months old, so the original delivery store applied wax is still holding up pretty well (water is still beading). The entire front half of my car is covered in PPF (which is interesting, because that *doesn't* have any wax on it at all, AFAIK.)

I did the hood and the front bumper, but not the front quarter panels/fenders. I did the entire trunk/rear bumper area. I did the front sheet of glass on the roof, but not the rear sheet of glass.

The feeling of the finish where it was applied is amazingly slick and smooth compared to the areas where it wasn't applied. Really, a big difference in feeling. I can't say that it actually looked any different though.

Of course, it rained two days later (today) while the car was parked outside at work.

I had to move the car off the charger after the rain, so I got to see it right away. Visibly, the beading on the car overall looked exactly the same. I couldn't tell the difference between any panel where it was applied, and panels where it wasn't applied.

Hours later, when the car had dried and I was home, the car was back to being "dirty", with a good coating of dust/dirt/road grime. I couldn't tell any difference in the amount of dirt that was clinging to any of the panels when comparing coated panels to uncoated panels.

So, as far as I can tell, aside from "feeling" slicker, beadmaker hasn't actually done anything to my benefit. It's quite possible that that is due to my 2 month old wax coating. But, if that's the case, why bother applying the stuff if you are going to keep the car waxed anyway?

It's also possible that when I go to wash the car again this coming weekend that I'll find the treated panels "easier" to clean...but the car wash I use, and the level of "dirt" never seems to be a problem anyway, so I don't know what I'd actually notice.

YMMV, but that was my experience. I think I'll continue to use the bottle until it is done, but it doesn't look like I'll be ordering the gallon sized refill.

My experience has also been that it doesn't "bead" any more than other products. I applied a heavy base coat, and then also 2 more coats on top of the base coat. I have driven through the rain 3 times now and the car is cleaner compared to driving through the rain without BeadMaker. The biggest difference I have seen so far is the back of our car always collects dust and road grime after driving through rain. With BeadMaker applied, it has significantly less dirt. The car is ceramic coated, so I expect my results to be different. I can absolutely positively say that the car is slicker feeling with BeadMaker than with the ceramic coating alone.

I am going to do a test this week or next week comparing wax, spray waxes, ceramic spray products, and BeadMaker all side by side on a hood of a non ceramic coated vehicle as a comparison.

 

[kgoroway]

I have driven through the rain 3 times now and the car is cleaner compared to driving through the rain without BeadMaker.

Can you be sure of that? Without having done only part of the car how could you know how it would look without the application?

The biggest difference I have seen so far is the back of our car always collects dust and road grime after driving through rain. With BeadMaker applied, it has significantly less dirt.

Yep, that's why I intentionally included the rear of the car. I'd love it if I could find something that made that part stay cleaner.

I think what I'm going to do with the remaining amount I have in the bottle is this: Continue to use it, even heavily, but only *ever* on the driver's side of the car, never applying it to the passenger side of the car. Since there is zero difference (that I can see) visibly, this shouldn't be noticeable at all. Over time, if I begin to see any difference in dirt repellent/cleanliness between the two sides of the car, I'll know I'm seeing results. Otherwise, it's like doing an experiment without a control.

 

[joebruin77]

I am going to do a test this week or next week comparing wax, spray waxes, ceramic spray products, and BeadMaker all side by side on a hood of a non ceramic coated vehicle as a comparison.

Hey, Mzairboy,
I found one more product that you may want to include in your test. It is Eagle 1 Wipe and Shine. Here is a video by Apex Detail comparing Eagle 1 W and S to Bead Maker. Spoiler Alert: Except for gloss, in which Bead Maker had a slight edge, Eage 1 came out ahead in almost all other categories.

My biggest concern about Bead Maker is that it is not very durable and does not offer a huge amount of protection. Yes, it is cheap and you can reapply it frequently, but I'd rather have piece of mind knowing that my paint is protected.

Here is a link to the video:

 

[mzairboy]

Can you be sure of that? Without having done only part of the car how could you know how it would look without the application?



Yep, that's why I intentionally included the rear of the car. I'd love it if I could find something that made that part stay cleaner.

I think what I'm going to do with the remaining amount I have in the bottle is this: Continue to use it, even heavily, but only *ever* on the driver's side of the car, never applying it to the passenger side of the car. Since there is zero difference (that I can see) visibly, this shouldn't be noticeable at all. Over time, if I begin to see any difference in dirt repellent/cleanliness between the two sides of the car, I'll know I'm seeing results. Otherwise, it's like doing an experiment without a control.

We have a Blue Model 3. Blue shows dirt very easily. I ceramic coated the car hoping it would stay cleaner. I am unimpressed with the "self cleaning" abilities of the ceramic coating and how easy it is to get water spots with the hard water at our house. So that is why I began looking into cheaper top coating products as a final wipe down to remove water spots and aid in keeping the car cleaner. In PA, we have horrible roads and rain all the time. A recipe for a dirty, grimy car.

I know how the car looks when it is dirty. I shine a 1,500 lumen flashlight on the car and it easily shows all the dust, dirt, and rain film on the car. The rear bumper, and doors usually have the most dust and film. The hood and front bumper with PPF and ceramic coating do a really good job of self cleaning. They are always the cleanest part of the car. I usually look at the car several times a week to see how clean or dirty it is since I have been testing different products. I have examined it with only ceramic coating, with Hydrosilex applied, with Turtle Wax Ice Spray applied, and now with BeadMaker. No, they have not been compared side by side, but I can tell the car is staying cleaner now than with other products by memory. Similar weather patterns as well. Dry for a few days, light showers, and a day or two of heavy rain.
While not scientific, I believe BeadMaker is performing better.

I plan to test it side by side with other products, just because I can and I want to know with better accuracy.
Doing half the car would be a good test. I just haven't gotten around to doing this yet on the Tesla.

 

[kgoroway]

We have a Blue Model 3.

Same here.

In PA, we have horrible roads and rain all the time. A recipe for a dirty, grimy car.

We're practically neighbors. I live in S. Jersey, and work in PA, just outside Philly.

I'm hoping my 1/2 car tests shows something useful.